1

Sandalwood Buddha Statue of the King Udayana

A. Terentyev

Preface
First hearing the rumors about the exceptional statue, which, according to a
legend, was cut out of sandalwood in the time of the Buddha himself (!), I was
full of skepticism and did not even consider the possibility of the statue being
made in the Buddha's lifetime.
But now, after 30 years of research experience, I am very reluctant to accept
the anonymous idea of the art historians stating that no Buddha image could
have been executed in his lifetime and his first icons appeared only centuries
later.

The data collected in this book do not pretend to be a thorough elucidation of

the problem of the 'Sandalwood statue of Udayana' since this would require of
much more textological and other investigations, such as the scientific analysis
of the composition of the material the statue was made of.
The book presents only in brief the old history of 'Zandan Zhuu' or 'Sandalwood
Lord' as it is named in Buryatia, and I view my main task to confide in more
details mainly about its fate in Russia, to where it was brought from China in
1900.
The research shed some light quite unexpectedly on utterly surprising and
unusual aspects of this detective – literally – story. It came out that the relics of
the Buddha himself had been kept in the statue. This book, to my hope, may
attract attention of people in Buryatia, who possibly still are in posession of
these relics, and, perhaps, of the 'sun stone' (diamond?) stolen from the statue's
head during Soviet time, and may help to return the sacred objects to the
statue.

Compiling this book was in fact a joint effort, which became possible through
enthusiasm of my friends and colleagues from different parts of our small world.
From the Buryat side the main contributors were Nina Bazarovna Badlayeva, the
former Chief curator of the Buryat Historical Museum in Ulan-Ude, who provided
me with numerous written and oral materials (some of them translated into
Russian by Tseren Dejid Dorjiyeva) including rare photographs, and a student of
Buryat lore Konstantin Yermilov, who shared with me numerous Buryat
publications on the subjectю In particular he has recently found the earliest
photograph of Zandan Zhuu, published here for the 1st time. He also translated
into the Russian language the first part of this book (which I originally wrote in
English) thus saving a good share of my time.
Czech scholar Lubosh Belka openly shared with me his rich resources; much
help was offered by Prof. of Sorbonne University Heather Stoddard, also by
Tibetan scholar Tashi Tsering, friends and colleagues from China and Japan,
specifically Shinichiro Miyake of Otany University (whose invitation to Kyoto
enabled me to personally explore the copy of the Sandalwood statue kept
there). Much contribution was made by the scholar of Thailand Peter Snelling,
who opened my eyes on the extent Siam version of the Sandalwood image
story, my thanks also to Anne and Olivier Teuch who encouraged me and
 2

supported my work. Also I am thankful for their cooperation to the former abbot
of the Egituy Datsan Dorji Tsydenov and to the present abbot Agvan Ravusay
Lama (Амgalan Dashatserenov).
Important advices were given by Andrey Strelkov. Algirdas Kugevicius
translated the text by Rolpe Dorje, interesting materials were given by Maya
Lebel from State Hermitage Museum in St.-Petersburg and by the Chief Curator
of the Buryat Historical Museum Svetlana Bardaleeva, Irina Harry corrected the
Russian transcriptions of many Chinese names…, in short – this book is the
result of our joint effort. And, as in most other cases, my deep gratitude goes to
the name of my late precious teacher Ven. Jimba-Jamtso Tsybenov, who was the
first to tell me the real story of Zandan Zhoo.

------------------------------------------------------------------
Though it is generally accepted that the first Buddha images appeared only
centuries after the Mahaparinirvana, in the Buddhist texts of various traditions
we find mention of several Buddha images made during his lifetime. Both
paintings and statues of Buddha are mentioned. Because, these stories are
generally known in the literature1, I shall mention it only briefly.
Perhaps the best known of the paintings of that period is the famous ‘Wheel of
Existence’ (Sanskr. bhavacakra), depicting the 12 links of ‘dependant
origination’, which is believed to have been composed under directions from the
Buddha himself, and is still reproduced in every temple of the Tibetan tradition.2
Also, several sculptures were reported to have been made. We find notice of
this in all Buddhist traditions. One account, preserved in the Tibetan tradition
tells us of a statue, composed of ‘precious materials’, when a patron named Dad
sbyin invited the Sangha for a meal. Because the Buddha himself could not
attend, and with his permission, the statue of Buddha was created by sculptor
mGon med zas sbyin, to preside over the assembly3.
According to Peter Skilling, the legend of the Sandalwood Buddha is told in
many versions also in India and Southeast Asia4. In Siamese version: "… The
story begins in the Jeta Grove on the outskirts of the Indian city of Sāvatthi. King
Pasenadi of Kosala comes … to pay homage to the Buddha but finds that he is
absent… The next day the Blessed One returns, and Pasenadi goes again to see
him. He says to the Buddha (summarised translation): 'Yesterday we came to
pay homage to the Lord Buddha, but we did not find him here. We grieved
greatly, and it was as if we had no refuge. We thought how, even when the
Buddha is still alive, we grieve when we don't see him – what about when Lord
1
Concerning Tibetan tradition see for example Dagyab, Loden Sherab. Tibetan Religious Art.
Parts 1,2./ Monographienreihe zur Geschichte, Kultur und Sprache der Völke Ost- und
Centralasiens, Band 52/ Wiesbaden, Otto Harrassowitz, 1977, p.20-23
2
The story of this painting offered by Bimbisara to Utrayana, the ruler of distant kingdom of
Roruka ( tib. sgra sgrog; not the Udayana of Vatsa – tib.: gsal ldan – as noted by Martha Carter:
The Mystery of the Udayana Buddha. Naples: Istituto Universitario Orientale, (Supplemento n.
64 ANNALI – vol. 50 (1990), fasc. 3., p.42), probably in Khotan, can be traced to the 37th
chapter of Divyāvadāna. See Divyāvadāna. Ed. by Vaidya. Darhanga: The Mithila Institute,
Buddhist Sanskrit Texts no.20, p. 544-586. See also Nobel, J. Udrayana, König von Roruka: Eine
Buddhistische Erzälung. Die Tibetishe Übersetzung des Sanskrittextes. Wiesbaden, 1955, vol.1.
3
Sum pa mkhan po. Dam pa’i chos byung tshul dpag bsam ljong bzang (rgya gar chos ‘byung).
Ed. by S. Ch. Das. Calkutta, 1908. See also Dagyab, op.cit., part.1, p. 22.
4
Peter Skilling. For merit and Nirvana: the production of art in the Bangkok Period//Arts
Asiatiques. Annales du musée Guimet et du musée Cernuschi. Tome 62, 2007, p.78.
 3

Buddha has passed away! I ask for permission to create an image of the
Buddha, which will act as the object of worship and offerings for humans and
gods.'
The Blessed One gave his permission, and Pasenadi had a statue of the
Master carved in sandalwood. When the king invited the Buddha to come to see
the image, the image began to rise from his seat to greet him. The Master,
however, commanded the image to stay seated, bidding it: 'Do not descent from
your seat! Remain there – it will not be very long before the Tathāgata passes
away. You must stay and protect the Śāsanā for five thousands years! Pasenadi
then asked about the benefits of making images and the Buddha tought him the
Vaṭṭ̇aṅgulī-jātaka…"5
This episode, when the Buddha stops the Sandalwood image from
descending is even reflected in the Thai Buddhist iconography6.
Similar legend we find also in Burma, but here, instead of Prasenajit, the
production of the image is ascribed to local king Candrasuriya. As Juliane
Shoeber tells us: "The myth7 claims that the casting and consecration of the
Mahāmuni Image occured as a result of the desire of the Arkanese king
Candrasuriya to pay homage to the Buddha. Perceiving by his divine powers the
king's wish to make offerings to him, the Buddha resolved to visit the king so as
not to expose him and his retinue to dangerous travel. Accompanied by Ānanda
and 500 arhats, the Buddha flew through the air and alighted on the Selagiri hill
in Arakan. King Candrasuriya approached the Buddha, offering flowers… When
Buddha prepared for his departure, the king lamented that he and his court
would be no longer able to pay homage to the Buddha and asked for an image
in his likeness. … the Buddha concented to the king's request. Candrasuriya
collected gems, gold, and other treasures for the casting, … [and then] Sakka
and Vissakamma cast his image… Then the Buddha breathed upon the image to
impart life in it, and "the image was transformed into a life-like one, so life-like
indeed that to the eyes of men, nats, Sakra, and Brahma there appeared to be
two Lords"8. … When the Buddha gazed upon the image, it rose as if possessed
of life, greeting the elder brother. The Buddha extended his right arm, waved
his hand, and said: "Yonger brother, do not stand up. I shall enter Nirvana in my
eightieth year; but you, endowed with the supernatural power of a Buddha shall
exist for 5,000 years…" … The Buddha then preached a sermon and named the
image Caṇda ̣ sāra. The myth of Mahāmuni is similarly recorded in the
Dhammapada Commentary, a Theravada text known throughout Burma and
Southeast Asia"9.

5
I summarize the story as recounted in Sanguan 2515, vol.2, pp.68-88, "Tamnan
phrakaewkaenchan." See also Penth, Hans. Jinakālamālī Index: An annotated index to the
Thailand part of Ratnapañña's Chronicle Jinakālamālī. Oxford: The Pali Text Society/Chiang Mai:
Silkworm Books. 1994, pp.167-171. (Footnote by P. Skilling – A.T.)
6
Peter Skilling. For merit and Nirvana… Fig.6,8, (p.82): Buddha "restraining the Sandalwood
Image", p. 82.
7
The myth recorded here follows Forchhammer, E. (Report on the Antiquities of Arakan, I.
Mahamuni Pagoda, (Rangoon: Superintendant, Government Printing), 1892, p.2ff) rendering of it
found in the Arkanese manuscript Sappadānapakarana…
8
Forchhammer, E. … p. 4.
9
Shoeber, Juliane. In the Presence of the Buddha: Ritual Veneration of the Burmese Mahāmuni
Image.// Shoeber, Juliane (ed.) Sacred Biography in the Buddhist traditions of South and
Southeast Asia. Honolulu: University of Hawai'I Press, 1997, pp. 259-288.
 4

In 1784 the Burmese king Bodawpaya conquered Arakan and moved the
Mahāmuni image to his capital Amarapura in Upper Burma, where it resides up
to now at 'Mahāmuni Pagoda'.
It can be noted that both Siam and Burmese legends speak about sitting
Buddha images10, while in Mahayana sources it is written about standing image:
it was made while the Buddha, in his 38th year, was preaching to his mother in
the Heaven of 33 gods, or, in the Tuśita heaven (both versions can be found in
the Pali Canon). On request of the king of Kauśāmbī, Vatsarāja, more commonly
known as the rāja Udayana, Maudgalyayana carried sculptors to the heaven
where the Buddha was preaching to his mother. There they observed the exact
form of the Buddha, and on returning back to the Earth, they erected the
‘natural size’ (about 2 m high) Buddha’s statue from goshirsha – “ox-head”
white sandalwood11. In front of the uṣṇiṣa a ‘sun-stone’ was inserted.12 The
legend says that when the Buddha returned from the heaven, the statue
greeted him. Ven. Hsing Yao gives a lively tale about this event:

“According to the Agama Sutras, the first Buddha statue was carved during the
summer retreat one particular year when the Buddha disappeared from his
disciples. When the disciples realized that the Blessed One was nowhere to be
found, they started asking around, but no one knew where he was. They then
went to ask Ananda if he knew the whereabouts of the Buddha, but Ananda was
also in the dark. Ananda suggested that they should solicit the help of
Aniruddha, who was foremost in supernatural vision. Using his supernatural
vision, Aniruddha found out that the Buddha had gone to Trayastrimsas Heaven
to teach the Dharma to his deceased mother, Queen Maya. Why did the Buddha
leave for Trayastrimsas Heaven without letting anyone know? There were three
reasons. First, the Buddha had always wanted to teach the Dharma to his
deceased mother to thank her for bringing him into this world. Second, as the
Buddha was always around to teach them, some of his disciples had grown
complacent and lax in attention to his teachings. Third, there had been some
quarrels within the Sangha, and the Buddha wanted those involved to have time
to reflect on their behavior.

10
“King Udayana Image”, Longmen caves, 7th century
Dr. Nicolas Revire from Thammasat University attracted my attantion to the fact that among the
seated "King Udayana" type sculptures there is special group of images from Longmen caves
(China) which seat in the 'Maitreya posture' with extended legs (bhadra-asana). "Many of them
are inscribed ca. 655-680 and clearly show some affinities with South-East Asian images. Both
Amy McNair (Donors of Longmen, 2007, pp. 99-104) and Marylin Rhie discuss the "Udayana
type" (in Early Buddhist Art of China and Central Asia, vol. 2, pp. 432-445 especially in footnote
360 where she makes a reference to Funan Images)." - Nicolas Revire (personal
communication).
11
Some Chinese sources render it as 'red sandalwood'.
12
Dagyab, op. cit., p. 22. This is an important iconographic detail which was not given due
attention. Usually the ‘flames’, golden or gilded tops or jewels are incerted on TOP of the uṣṇiṣa,
not ‘in front’ of it. See also plate 0?? – the late Japanese illustration of making this statue by
sculptors.
 5

Among those who missed the Buddha the most was King Udayana of Kauśāmbī.
The king was most reverent toward the Buddha, and he missed the presence of
the Buddha so much that he fell ill. The royal household put their heads
together to find a way to make the king feel better. They all agreed that the
best way was to find the best sculptor in the land and have him sculpt a statue
of the Buddha. They hoped that, in the absence of the Buddha, they could pay
their respects to the statue instead. The king was very pleased with the idea,
and he immediately asked Maudgalyayana, who was foremost in supernatural
power, to help them. Using his supernatural power, Maudgalyayana transported
a sculptor to Trayastrimshas Heaven so that he might study the magnificent
appearance of the Buddha. After three visits to the heaven, the sculptor finally
carved a five-foot tall likeness of the Buddha out of sandalwood. When the king
saw the finished statue, he was happy beyond words, and his illness was cured.

After three months, the Buddha returned to our world. On his return, the statue
actually came alive and walked to welcome the Buddha home. The Buddha
smiled and said, "You must be tired from these three months. For future
generations of sentient beings, it will be up to you to remind them of the
Truth."13

Some more legends are connected with this statue14, describing its origin
with only slight variations. The most important of ancient alternatives is
recorded in the diaries of Fa-hsien, who visited India before 414. According to
this version, known already in Kuṣāṇa Era15, not Udayana, but rāja Prasenajit (as
in the Siam version cited earlier) has commissioned creation of the 1st Buddha
image – also out of gayashirsha sandalwood (some versions mention gold). Fa-
hsien claims that he saw this very image in Jetavana Vihāra in Śrāvastī16 and
states that this Prasenajit statue was the very first Buddha icon and a model of
all others.17 In both Mahayana narratives – on Udayana and Prasenajit - Buddha
said that later the statue will move to China.
According to S.Ch. Das, the statue was first kept in Bodh-Gaya, but in the
III century B.C. it was carried to Bactria18: perhaps it was the foremost place
where the Buddhist teachings flourished in that period. There were great
Buddhist monasteries with thousands of caves for resident monks in Central

13
. Hsing Yao. Seeng the Buddha http://www.blia.org/english/publications/booklet/pages/21.htm
Here and further on, the transliterations of names and terms in quotations follow the original
sources.
14
. See Lha dbang blo gros bzang po. bstan rtsis ‘dod sbyin gter ‘bum. Ed. by E. Schlagintweit as
“Die Berechnung der Lehre. //Eine Zeitschrift zur Berehtigung zur buddhistisch Chronologie
verfassed im Yahre 1591 von Sureśamatibhadra.// Abh. der Königl. bauerischen Akademie der
Wissenschaften, I Cl., XX Bd., 3 Abt., München, 1897, p. 589-670.
Also Benjamin Rowland, Jr. A Note on the Invention of the Buddha Image//Harvard Journal of
Asiatic Studies, Vol. 11, No. 1/2 (Jun., 1948), pp. 181-186.
See also Carter, Martha L. The Mystery of the Udayana Buddha. Naples: Istituto Universitario
Orientale, (Supplemento n. 64 agli ANNALI – vol. 50 (1990), fasc. 3.
15
. Carter, M., op. cit., p. 8.
16
. Beal, S. Buddhist Records of the Western World, 2 vols. London, 1884, I, p. xliv-xlv.
17
. It is not quite clear if it was a sitting or standing image. Martha Carter identifies the
Gandhāran relief of the Peshavar Museum where a seated Buddha is presented a seated Buddha
statuette as the gift of Prasenajit. – Carter, M., op. cit., p. 8.
18
. Das, S. Ch. Tibetan-English Dictionary. Calcutta, 1901, p. 996.
 6

Asian areas, and recently we were sadly reminded about the Buddhist fame of
these places, when the Taliban destroyed the greatest Buddha statues in the
world, made in Bamyan in the 4th century a.d. Perhaps, these statues were
replicas of the famous Sandalwood image of Udayana or Prasenajit.
In the 4th century a.d. a Kashmiri monk Kumārāyana in order to save this
statue from military dangers of the time, decided to take it to China, and on the
way arrived to Kucha, one of the Central Asian oasises on the Silk Root. The
legend says he carried the statue on his back during the day, and at night the
statue carried him19. When he reached the kingdom of Kucha, he was welcomed
by the king and was asked to stay for some time. Soon he became the royal
priest and the teacher of the kingdom. The younger sister of the king, Jīvaka, fell
in love with him. In compliance with royal decree, Kumārāyana stopped his
monkhood and married the king's sister. When a son was born to them, they
called him Kumārajīva, combining their names.20 Kumārajīva (344-413) became
an erudite Buddhist scholar and famous translator of Buddhist texts – to the
degree, that the Chinese troops were sent to Kucha to capture Kumārajīva and
bring him to China.21
When Kucha has fallen and Kumārajīva was captured in 384, it is believed that
the statue was taken with him to China, though Kumārajīva's biography does
not mention it22.
The statue presumably remained in Ch’angan up to 417, was then moved to
Chien-k’ang (Nanking) and stayed there up to 588. In that year the statue
survived the destruction of a monastery by Sui troops and was taken by the
monk Chu-li to Yang-chou, Kiangsu, where in 614 Chu-li made copy of it. Other
copies were also made, and the Japanese pilgrim-monk Ennin, who visited there
in 838, mentions four (!) copies of Sandalwood Buddha23. Then, because of local
wars, the original statue was again moved several times and appeared in K’ai-
feng in 97024, where at the end of the tenth century, another copy was made by
order of the Japanese monk, Chonen (938-1016) and then taken to Japan in 985
or 987. According to the text written by Ven. Jozan, pupil and traveling
companion of Ven. Chonen: “this image of the Seiryo-ji was a copy, executed by
a sculptor named Chang Jong, of the famous sandalwood figure which King
Udayana had made when the Buddha was preaching the law to his mother in
the heaven of the Thirty-three deities.”25
19
. See Soper, A.C. Literary Evidence for Early Buddhist Art in China// Artibus Asiae,
Supplementum XX, Ascona, 1959, p. 264.
20
. Morrel, R.E. (transl.) Sand and Pebbles (Shasekishū): The Tales of Mujū Ichien, A voice for
Pluralism in Kamakura Japan. Albany: State University of New York Press. 1985. p.143-144.
21
. See Carter, M., op. cit., p. 9.
22
The 'Blue Annals' by Gos Lotsava Shonnupal (tr. By G. Roerich, Calcutta, 1949, p. 48) also
does not mention Kumārajīva when telling the story how the Sandalwood statue was brought to
China by Chinese commander. He mentions then, that both the statue and the Buddha relics
captured by this general, when he raided the Northern India, were venerated also by
descendants of the general.
23
Evidently not all of them were of Chinese origin. Some researches say that the replicas of the
Sandalwood statue penetrated China before the 4th century(Gregory Henderson and Leon
Hurvitz 'The Buddha of Seiryoji: New Finds and New Theory'// Artibus Asiae 19 (1956), p.15).
24
. Soper, A.C., op. cit., p. 264-265.
25
. J. Hackin. The Colossal Buddhas at Bamiyan and their Influence on Buddhist Sculpture// The
Eastern Art. vol.1:2, 1928.10, pp. 109-116. Comparing features of the Japanese statue and the
statue preserved in Russia (see Fig. 9a) we can see both striking similarities, like straight nose
line, but also a number of evident discrepancies. I guess, this might be explained by the fact,
 7

This copy was installed in 1018, in a Shaka Hall at Seikaji and is still
there . It is interesting to mentioned that at some point the Japanese decided
26

that Chinese original and Japanese copy miraculously ‘changed places’ and now
it is the authentic Udayana Buddha statue is being preserved in Japan, which, as
such, came to be known as “the red sandalwood image of Shakyamuni
transmitted through three countries”27.
Thus, the legend that connects the Sandalwood statue supposedly made
by Udayana or Prasenajit and brought to China by Kumārajīva is the main
version. Still in the Chinese sources there are also alternative stories. In
particular, there is a contradictory statement that the Udayana statue was seen
by Xuanzang, who visited Kauśāmbī in the 7th century, while it was supposed to
be in China for at least 3 centuries by that time:
“In the city, within an old palace, there is a large vihara about 60 feet
high; in it is a figure of Buddha carved out of sandalwood, above which is a
stone canopy. It is the work of the king U-to-yen-na (Udayana). By its spiritual
qualities (or, between its spiritual marks) it produces a divine light which from
time to time shines forth. The princes of various countries have used their
power to carry off this statue, but although many men have tried, not all the
number could move it. They therefore worship copies of it, and they pretend
that the likeness is a true one, and this is the original of all such figures. When
Tathagata first arrived at complete enlightenment, he ascended up to heaven to
preach the law for the benefit of his mother, and for three months remained
absent. This king, (i.e., Udayana), thinking of him with affection, desired to have
an image of his person; therefore he asked Mudgalyayanaputra, by his spiritual
power, to transport an artist to the heavenly mansions to observe the excellent
marks of Buddha's body, and carve a sandalwood statue. When Tathagata
returned from the heavenly palace, the carved figure of sandalwood rose and
saluted the Lord of the World. The Lord then graciously addressed it and said,
"The work expected from you is to toil in the conversion of heretics, and to lead
in the way of religion future ages."28

Further accounts describe how the Udayana image of Shakyamuni was brought
from India to China during the Six Dynasties and T'ang periods. Again, some
sources claim, that the sandalwood statue was taken to China by Kashyapa
Matanga, when he joined the Emperor Mingti's mission in the first century AD,
and that it was presented to the emperor.29

mentioned by the late Kōgi Kudara – that the actual carving of the statue took place in Taizhou
two years (!) after Chōnen and his attendants actually saw the statue in Bianjing in 984. (Kōgi
Kudara. Uigur and Tibetan Translations of "The History of the Buddha Statue of Sandalwood in
China"// Turfan Revisited – The First Century of Research into the Arts and Cultures of the Silk
Road. Ed. By Desmond Durkin-Meisterernst, Simone-Christiane Raschmann, Jens Wilkens,
Marianne Yaldis and Peter Zieme. Berlin: Dietrich Reimer Verlag, 2004, p.151.)
26
. As mentioned by M. Carter (p. 16), the resent research had proved that this statue is the
original copy brought by Chonen in 988: see Henderson G. and Hurvitz L. “The Buddha of
Seiryōji”, Artibus Asiae, XIX, 1, 1956, pp. 5-55.
27
. Henderson G. and Hurvitz L. “The Buddha of Seiryōji”, Artibus Asiae, XIX, 1, 1956, p. 6-7.
Quoted by M. Carter, p. 16.
28
. Xuan Zang (Hiuen Tsiang). Transl. by Samuel Bell. Buddhist Records of the Western World,
London, 1906, I. 235.
29
. http://www2.bremen.de/info/nepal/Icono/EShakya.htm.
 8

Tibetan historian Sumba Khenpo states that this statue was brought to China in
the times of Cin dynasty30. As stated in the Tibetan canonical text on the History
of the Sandalwood Buddha, Tsan dan gyi sku rgya nag san a bzhugs ba’i byung
tshul (or, shorter, Tsan dan jo bo’i lo rgyus) which was translated into Tibetan
from the Chinese in 126331, for 68 years the statue was kept in the city of Khu
sen (= Kucha – A.T.) in the country of Li (Khotan – A.T.), and for the following 40
years – at the north of Mi nyag. Then it was kept for 17 years in Kyin chan hu,
etc., and finally was brought to Peking. According to another Tibetan author
De'u dmar dge bshes bstan 'dzin phun tshog, whose work Kun gsal tshon gyi las
rim me tog mdangs ster 'ja' 'od 'bum byin written presumably between 1720
and 1730 was partly published and translated by David Jackson, this
Sandalwood image, when brought to China, was copied on cloth by the minister
of Chinese emperor named Zi Chun Phu Sa Then and in this way the Chinese
tradition of scroll paintings 'si thang' was started.32
More details we learn from the other Tibetan text composed by the famous 3rd
Peking Khutuhtu lCang skya Rol pa’i rdo rje (1717-1786)33, who was interested
in the Buddhist art and himself composed numerous iconographic manuals.
In his historical survey of this famous statue written in Tibetan, but based
primarily on Chinese sources, as the author himself says in his introduction
("because the Tibetan accounts of this image are limited"), he repeats the basic
Udayana legend, pointing that in the Heaven of 33, the sculptors were looking
not at Buddha himself, but at his reflection in waters (this is a popular
explanation of the shape of the wavy folds on the clothes of this statue), and
also, Rol pa’i rdo rje mentions that on returning to Earth Buddha praised the
statue’s semblance to himself, made a prophesy about the future travel of the
statue into China and specifically stressed that this statue will become a
supreme object of refuge for confessing sins, and thus will greatly benefit the
Dharma in the future. He also mentions a special features of the statue like 'the
eyes looking to the sky symbolising leading beings to Awakening, the heat could
be felt at the statue's heart area, and that a silk thread could be drown between
feet of the statue and th ground' – that is in fact the statue is levitating.34

30
. Sum pa mkhan po. Op. cit., p. 137.
31
. Beijing edition of Tibetan Tripitaka, No. 5090. See Востриков А.И. Тибетская историческая
литература. Москва, 1962, p. 223. This text was published and translated into English by Kōgi
Kudara (Uigur and Tibetan Translations of "The History of the Buddha Statue of Sandalwood in
China"// Turfan Revisited – The First Century of Research into the Arts and Cultures of the Silk
Road. Ed. By Desmond Durkin-Meisterernst, Simone-Christiane Raschmann, Jens Wilkens,
Marianne Yaldis and Peter Zieme. Berlin: Dietrich Reimer Verlag, 2004, pp.149-154.
32
Jackson, D. A History of Tibetan painting. Wien: Verlag der Österreichischenen Akademie der
Wissenschaften, 1996, pp. 49, 387.
33
. Tsan dan jo bo’i lo rgyus skor tshad phan yon mdor bsdus rin po che’i phreng ba//
gSung-‘bum [Collected Works], vol. 7. –(My gratitude to Dr. L. Belka, who supplied me with this
text.) A new Russian translation by A. Kugevicius made for this book is a Supplement 3 on p.??
(For the 1st time it was translated into Russian from the Mongolian translation by Mongolian
Enkhe-lama as 'Сутра по имени «Драгоценная гирлянда», обобщающая легенда о Зандан
Жуу, о пользе и благе от почитания этой святыни', and published as a Supplement 2 to
Buryat Buddhist magazine Легшед No. 2, 2004. p. 3-6.)
p.5 This story of the levitating statue is still popular in Buryatia.
34 Tsan dan jo bo’i lo rgyus,

As it was recently narratad by the former Chief Curator of the Museum Nina
Bazarovna Badlayeva: " I have heard that the statue is a little bit lifted above
the ground, and it is possible to strach a thread or a 'khadag' (silk ceremonial
 9

Rol pa’i rdo rje’s text then follows the ‘Kumārajīva version’ of the statue’s
travels, and states that finally the statue was placed at Peking. He says that
starting from Emperor Khublai of the Yuan dynasty and up to the Chin dynasty
all emperors greatly worshipped this statue; and finally emperor Kangxi, who
was an emanation of Manjuśrī , erected a special temple to the NW of the
Forbidden City and the statue was moved there with many corresponding
ceremonies.
Rol pa’i rdo rje points to reported cases of the statue healing people, and аlso
mentions different light phenomena created by the statue, such as light rays
and sparks.
Some more details on this temple and statue are found in a slightly deviating
presentation of 1935: “To the north of the [National] Library is a short wide
street running to the wall of the Park, which is called Chan T’an Ssŭ (Temple of
the Red Sandalwood Buddha). The name is all that now remains to remind us of
one of the largest and most famous temples in Peking, which once stood on this
street, on the site now occupied by military barracks… It was built under early
Mings and originally called Ch’ing Fo Tien (Hall of the Pure Buddha), later
changed to Hung Jên Ssŭ (Temple of Exalted Benevolence). This name Chan
T’an Ssŭ dates from the 15th year of Kangxi (1676), when the temple was
reconstructed and dedicated to Chan T’an Buddha. It consisted of three large
buildings, one of which, Ta Pao Tien (Hall of the great Jewel) contained a very
famous and miraculous idol.
This was a statue of Buddha five feet high in red sandalwood, covered with
black varnish, which used to change colour according to temperature and hour
of the day. In the reign of Ming Emperor Wan Li (1572-1620, - A.T.) it was
guilded over. According to a stone tablet of the 60th year of Kangxi (1722) that
used to stand in the temple35, this idol was carved in the days of the Chou
dynasty and came of itself to China from the West, at the time when Buddha
appeared on earth. Thirty two similar idols were made at the same time, but
Buddha is said to have declared that this Chan T’an one was the only true
likeness… The idol was carried from place to place in different parts of China –
the details of its pilgrimage if true, form a remarkable record – until it finally
found a resting place in this temple. What became of the idol eventually is not
known…
The temple was well endowed by Manchu Emperors, and several hundred
Lamas resided there. A Living Buddha also had his residence there and used to
hold a grand prаyer-meetings with “Devil Dances” on the 8th of the first moon”36
The very first European reference of the temple and statue was evidently
made by E. Pander: „Chan tan ssu (Zhantansi) is totally inaccessible to

scarf – A.T.) under its feet. I never tried to do it myself, but some people did,
and not all managed. It is well known that Bogdo Gegen did it under the watch
of many witnesses during his second visit to Buryatia, when the statue was
standing at Egitui Datsan already. Perhaps, one should be pure enough to
perform it. (The text of this interview was kindly supplied by K.Ermilov.)
35
The Chinese text of this tablet and translation are given in Supplement.
36
. Arlington, L.C. (Lewis Charles) and William Lewisohn with an introduction by Geremie
Barmbe. In Search of Old Peking. Hong Kong : Oxford University Press, 1987, pp. 134, 135. (I am
thankful to Alan Mok, who provided me with this important reference)
 10

Europeans. I was allowed to enter the temple after long negotiations. I had to
undertake the costly celebration of a mass and during that had to climb the
stairs of Chan t´an chao (Zhantan Jowo) and offer a khatag (kha.btags), i.e., a
silken scarf, as well as a big piece of silver at his feet. There I also saw a
gigantic and richly adorned mandala made of silver ..., a splendid, coloured
porcelain statue of Kuan yin, and a complete version of the Kanjur in Manchu
language“.37
The Sandalwood statue was also mentioned by a Russian Mongolist A.
Pozdneev, who notes that it was the Sandalwood monastery, where Zanabazar
(the First Bogdo-gegen of Mongolia) and the emperor Kangxi sat together on the
same mat38 – a historic moment that reminded the meeting of the Sakya Lama
Phagpa and emperor Khublai when a history of Buddhism in Mongolia was
initiated.39
More detailed description was made by a French Catholic priest Alphonce
Favier (1837-1905), who even made a photograph of the Chan T’an Temple and
published a print of a line-engraving of the statue in his book on Peking, printed
in 189740. Favier reproduced an ‘official’ Chinese version of the statue’s
genealogy:
“TCHAN-T’AN-SSE – Lamas’s temple
This temple is located in the Imperial City, north of the Si-che-k’ou catholic
institutions compound. Built by the Ming and formerly named Tsing-fou-tien
during this dynasty, it then had been reconstructed and called Houng-jen-sse by
K’ang-si on the fifth year of his reign; it is more well-known as Tchan-t’an-see.
Several hundred lamas, paid by the Emperor, serve this elaborately decorated
pagoda. Marble has been used for the paved yards and three sumptuous
buildings stand there: the first is called T’ieu-ouang-tien ; the second Tse-je-
pao-tien ; the third Ta-pao-tien : the famous Fo (Buddha – A.T.) image, so-called
miraculous, can be seen in the third one.
True by tradition, it is said that this statue, which measures slightly more than
five foot high, came by itself from the West, as soon as Fo appeared. It is a
T’chan-tan wood image and it has been commissioned by the King You-tien-
ouang, the twelfth year of Mou-ouang’s reign, during the Tcheou dynasty.
Although thirty-two statues had been sculpted, Fo [Himself] has revealed that
this is the only one likeness. The King of Po-see (Persia) had ordered one copy
and called it Jou-laè-siang, meaning that it can live and walk by itself.
Long ago, it had been covered with a sort of blackish varnish and its color used
to change with the temperature and hour. But the Empress-mother, during the
reign of the Emperor Ouan-li , Ming dynasty, ordered to have the image wholly
gilded.

37
. Pander, Das Lamaistishe Pantheon// Zeitschrift für Ethnologie, Berlin, 1889) p. 40, fn. 12. The
English translation is quoted from Patricia Berger: Berger, Patricia, Empire of Emptiness:
Buddhist Art and Political Authority in Quing China, Honolulu: University of Hawai´i Press 2003,
p. 164.
38
This is an important detail, because, according to Eastern etiquette the higher person should
be sitting higher.
39
. See Позднеев, А. Монголия и монголы. (Mongolia and the Mongols) СПб.: Издание
Императорского географического общества.1896. (Mongolia and the Mongols, 333. Quoted
by Patricia Berger), p. 227, note 81.
40
. Favier, Alphonse. Péking: Histoire Et Description. Peking: Imprimerie des Lazaristes au Pé-
T'ang, 1897.
 11

Since it was sculpted up until the sixtieth year of K’ang-si, 2710 years had
elapsed41. (All these fabulous/mythical details had been recounted by K’ang-si
[himself]).
After staying in the West42 for 1280 years, it [image] left by itself to the Koui-
tse-kouo (Kucha – A.T.) and it remained there for 68 years and after that in the
Kan-sou for 14 years, in Si-ngan-fou for 17 years, in Kiang-nan for 173 years, in
Ngan-houi 367 years, and then moved to others places for more or less a long
time.
At last, it arrived at Peking (Beijing) into the Cheng-ngan-sse pagoda, and [then]
into the Imperial Palace where it stayed for 54 years. Because the Palace had
been burned, it returned to the pagoda for 59 years. All the events mentioned
had happened before and during the Yuen dynasty.
During the Ming dynasty, it [the image] arrived to Kiou-foung-sse and stayed
there for 128 years. In brief, after many others peregrinations, it went for good
[permanently] to the Houng-jen-sse pagoda on the fourth year of K’ang-si. It still
can be seen in this place.
The image presents one hand upraised to the sky, the other pointed down to
earth.
This statue is highly venerated and even the Emperor worships it.”43
In 1895 this very statue in the above temple of Chan T'an Ssŭ was seen by
S. Ch. Das.44
The next page in the history of the travels of this statue was turned during
Boxer’s uprising in China.
There is a general opinion that the statue was lost: “Records show that the
image was … finally lost in the upheaval surrounding the Boxer Rebellion in
1900.” 45
M. Carter also notes that now we know “… the only extant replica of the
Udayana image, the Seiryōji Buddha…”46
Tchekh scholar Lubosh Belka in his recent publication47 quotes many more
accounts, in particular Susan Naquin: ,,The temple i.e. Zhantansi, Sandalwood
Temple, known also as Hongrensi, the Temple of Vast Humaneness, where the
Beijing Sandalwood Buddha was placed, was largely destroyed by French armies
during the Boxer troubles in 1900, and the wonderful image was lost."48
Another independent report about the fate of the Beijing statue, comes from
Wan Jiu-ling: ,,Because of the Geng Zi Coup Defeat in Guang Xu Period Hong
Ren Temple suffered hardships of war, and the sandalwood image of the
Buddha was thus lost...”49

41
. This refers to traditional Chinese dating of Buddha’s life.
42
. That is India.
43
. Favier, Alphonse. Péking, p.357-358. This quotation was kindly translated for me from French by Anne Tuech.
44
. Das, op. cit., p. 996.
45
. Shakyamuni - the historical Buddha. http://www.taleofgenji.org/shakyamuni.html)
46
. Carter, M.L. op.cit., p.1 Note 2.
47
. Zandan Zhuu and The Buryat Sangha: History and present state.// Экологические проблемы и духовные традиции
народов Байкальского региона. Материалы научно-практической конференции, посвящённой памяти ламы-
гелонга Данзан-Хайбзуна Самаева. Улан-Удэ: изд-во ГУЗ РЦМП МЗ РБ.2006,(The Ecological Problems and Spiritual
Traditions of the Peoples of the Baikal Region. Ulan-Ude : Izd-vo GUZ, 2006. ISBN 5-98582-041-6) с. 143-152.
48
. Naquin, Susan. Peking: Temples and City Life, 1400-1900, Berkeley: University of California
Press, 2000, p. 343
49
. Jiu-ling, Wan. A Brief History of the First Sandalwood Image of Shakyamuni Buddha",
www.tangmi.com/indiaphoto/buddlha.htm (10.06.2006).
 12

In fact the statue was not lost, but was secretly taken to Russia. But the secrecy
was so profound that until recently I was able to find only two rwferences about
it. One was published by the Tibetan author Thubten Phuntsog in 1985:
"According to [one] Chinese (rgya'i tshig 'dzin du) this Sandalwood statue, when
there was a distruction in Beijing done by the armies of the eight states in 1900,
was carried by the Russian troops into their country and placed into the Cremlin
Palace in Moscow."50 Also, though only in 2005, - well after some Buryat
publications on that issue, Chinese scholar Wang mentioned at the end of his
article the news from the Russian scholar "Czar" (such name does not occur in
Russian language, so I was unable to trace it) that the statue is kept in Ulan-
Ude, Buryatia51.

True, in 1900, troops of the Eight-Nation Alliance, including France and Russia,
entered Peking.
What is significant here is that the Russian military contingent included the
Buryat Cossacks of the Transbaikal Cossack Host, special national detachments
from the Baikal area in Siberia.
Buryats and Kalmuks are the Mongol tribes which migrated into Russian
territory in the 17th century and settled there. They confessed a Tibetan form of
Buddhism, so the Buddhist Teachings became spread in Russia with their
migration.52 There were many Buryat detachments among the Russian troops in
Bejing.
We know several versions of what happened next.
Belka53 starts with the version by the Buryat scholar Bazar B. Baradin, who
states that the monks of Chan T'an Ssŭ monastery themselves, in order to save
the famous Sandalwood statue from the French troops who had set the
monastery on fire, managed to get it out of Peking and then transferred it to
Buryatia.54
The second version says that first the statue was hidden from the dangers of
war in Wu Tai Shan mountains (perhaps by the monks, mentioned by Baradin).
Then, according to the 1990 testimony of a by then 89-old Buryat lady Darizhap
Lupilova (Belka mistakenly writes 'Garmayeva'), recently published in Russia:
“After the French took control over Beijing during the Boxer Rebellion,
Mongolian monks from the Beijing monastery Yun-khua [Yonghegong]
approached the French missionary named Favre [Alphonse Favier – L.B.]55 with a

50
Gangs dkar ri bod 1985, №2 Thub bstan Phun tshog: Bod kyi mdses rtsal ri mo'I lo rgyus
(History of Tibetan Painting. p. 79- note 80). My thanks to Mr. Tashi Tsering for this reference.
51
Wang, Jiapeng. Huang Di Yu Shi Tan Rui Xiang (The Emperor and the Sandal Wood
Buddha) / /Forbidden City, Volume 128, 2005 01. p. 187. My thanks to Alan Mok for this
reference.
52
. See more on the history of Buddhism in Russia e.g. Terentyev A. Tibetan Buddhism in
Russia // "The Tibet Journal", Vol. XXI, No.3, Autumn 1996, p. 60-70.
53
. Op. cit., p. 145.
54
. Барадин, Базар (Baradin, Bazar). Буддийские монастыри// Альманах «Ориент», вып.I,
Sankt-Petersburg, 1992, с. 82.
55
. This is a very interesting note. “Favre”, as we know, was not just a “missionary”: Pierre Marie
Alphonse Favier (1873-1905) was bishop of Beijing's Pehtang Cathedral. In 1899, he was
appointed a head Catholic Bishop in Beijing – that is he became a chief Christian religious figure
of the area. The Qing Government granted him the official uniform of the second rank as an
indication of courteous reception. So, the fact that the head French Catholic priest was asked for
help, and not by the monks of the Sandalwood Monastery, but by the monks of the main
 13

plea to protect sacraments against the threat inherent to war. The missionary
agreed, and the trusting monks calmed down. However, in the meantime, the
missionary dispossessed the statue of all the precious jewels - rubies and
brilliants, and kept them. To cover traces, he wrote an instruction for French
troops to burn down the monastery. During the fire, monks managed to save
the Zandan Zhuu56 and to hide it in Wutaishan. This happened in 189857.
When Erdenii Sorzho Lama of Egitui Monastery learned of it, he collected money
amongst the believers to be able to bring this statue to the monastery... When it
was the time to transport the sacrament of the Zandan Zhuu, Erdenii Sorzho
Lama asked his faithful companion Bazar Gavzha Soibosho, who had always
been at his side, and one of his pupils named Garmyn Lupil for help. They
carried the sacrament of the Zandan Zhuu on a wagon made especially for this
purpose, which the statue fitted well. It was carefully wrapped in a khadak
(ceremonial scarves – A.T.) and covered with canvas. To be able to transfer the
load safely, they made all the necessary precautions, and they traveled only on
safe roads. Before they arrived in Egita, they passed Aksha, Bada, Kizhinga,
Uldurga and Marakta. Upon arrival they kept the statue at home and not in the
monastery. It is believed that they brought the Zandan Zhuu in 1900, because
on the decision of Taisha (local chieftain – A.T.) Aiusha Tsyrendorzho from
January 25th 1901, the statue was placed in the monastery (the document
confirming this fact is found in Ulan-Ude Municipal Archives file 285, op. 1-117-
1)58."
This story, Darizhap Garmayeva heard in her childhood from Garmyn Lupil
himself, who was her father."59
According to the 3rd version, "the statue was brought from China by two
Mongols, named Sodnom and Shagdar, and presented as a gift to a
monastery".60
I personally have more faith in another version of this legend first
transmitted to me orally by my late Buryat guru, Ven. Zhimba-Zhamtso
Tsybenov, around 1982. According to Ven. Zhimba-Zhamtso, the whole action of
bringing the Sandalwood statue to Buryatia was a precisely planned conspiracy
by Ven. Zodboyev, the abbot of the Egitui Datsan, and executed by the Egetui
Lama Gombo Dorje (Gombo Dorje was the proper monastic name of this person,
monastery of the Tibetan tradition, Yonghegong, shows how seriously the danger to the statue
was perceived by the Buddhist Community of Peking. And, as we saw from his book published
just before the uprising, Favier was no less informed about the statue’s history, than the
Buddhist monks, who approached him with their request.
Because the Bishop Favier was a writing person, and, as we saw, left one of the first European
description of the statue, there was a hope, that he would mention in his memories the details
of what actually happened with the temple and statue. But when I shared this thought with L.
Belka, Belka wrote that he has already found Favier's diaries: "I was searching in his diary
(documented his summer during the Boxer Rebellion day by day), but there is no mention about
Beijing Sandalwood Buddha. It is quite strange, because he published in the book a photo of the
Beijing Sandalwood Temple…" (L. Belka, personal letter of 16.11.2006).
I would say it is more than strange, and the accusitions of an old Buryat lady immediately come
into mind…
56
. In Buryatia this Sandal statue is known by a Mongolized name of Zandan Zhuu.
57
. In fact the allied troops started their operation only in 1900.
58
. Note by Belka: op.cit., p. 147.
59
. Бахлаев С. А,. Эгитуйский дацан [Egitui Monastery], Улан-Удэ: Изд-во Бурятского
Университета, 2004, с. 17-21. English translation quoted from Belka, op. cit., p. 147.
60
Ibid.
 14

while Erdeni Sorzho, mentioned above, is a more ‘popular’ nickname:

‘Erdeniyev’ – was his official surname, russified as a patronymic, according to
the Russian policy of russification of peoples of the Empire, while ‘Sorzho’ is the
name of his office in the monastery, which may be freely translated here as
Deputy Abbot).
According to Ven. Zhimba-Zhamtso, the fire in the Chan T'an Ssŭ monastery
was set by Buryat Cossacks themselves61, and during the fire the statue was
stolen and hidden in somebody’s house in suburbs of Peking for a year. When
the accident was more or less forgotten, the statue, hidden in a cart with hay,
was carried through Mongolia down to Russia, to Egetuy Monastery.
This version is likely to fit the oral information from a late Russian scholar and
diplomat in China Boris Pankratov (1892-1979) published by V. Montlevich, “The
operation was headed by the chief of the Russian postal service, Gomboyev.
The statue was placed on a sledge, covered with straw, and camouflaged by
provisions and postal properties. There were two sledges, and the statue was
loaded on the second.”62
Similar independent confirmation and maybe a new dimension of the
Beijing version is voiced by Buryat author Galina Chemitdorjin, who quotes the
Buryat language book by one of the oldest Buryat ‘uligerchins’ (a kind of folk
epic-singers) Rigzin Erdyneev "Эгэтын дасанай тyyхэhээ", where the writer
says "…there came a telegram from Khambo Agvan Dorjiev to Naidan
(Nikolay63) Gomboyev, the manager of the postal station by the Russian
Consulate in Peking – to search all possibilities to buy the Zandan Zhuu…64".
Nowadays there appeared many independent confirmations of this
version. We already know the name of kossak officer who executed the deal:
this was the head of the Buryat kossaks security detachment of the Russian
Embassy in Beijing ataman Bato Aisuyev. I received a letter from his compatriot
D. Badmayev (from the village of Nizhny Burgatai in Buryatia) who quats local
memories about it:
"… headed by the Selengin kossaks ataman Bato Aisuyev, small group [of
kossaks] penetrated the Emperor's Museum and stole the statue of the god
Zandan Zhuu. They payed the equal to the statue weight in gold to the person

61
. Still, there is alternative data by Arlington and Lewisohn, who insist that “This temple was
completely destroyed by the Allies in 1900, because it was head-quoters and drill-ground of the
Boxers, whilst the Lama priests attached to it took a leading part in inciting the populace and
troops to attack the neighbouring Catholic cathedral.” Arlington, L.C. (Lewis Charles) and William
Lewisohn, op. cit., p. 134. This information seems strange, because, as we know, the temple
belonged to the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, and so, could hardly be involved into Boxer’s
movement. Not to mention that marshal arts are not practiced in the Tibetan tradition.
62
. Монтлевич В.М. Сандаловый Будда // "Гаруда" №2/1996, с. 61.
63
. It is still common even now, that some Buryats have both Buryat and Russian names and use
it depending on the convenience.
64
. Чимитдоржин, Галина. "Эгитуйский дацан "Дамчой Равжелинг" и его
святыня"//,Легшед.Приложение №2, 2004, p. 1l-13. The Internet version:
www.datsan.buryatia.ru/chimitdor.html (29 Nov 2004). Tsanid Khambo Lama Agvan Dorjiev
(1854-1938) was the most famous Buddhist leader in Russia, one of the tutors and confidents of
the 13th Dalai Lama, and one of the main heroes of the “Big Game” in Asia. In 1914 he built a
famous Buddhist Temple in St.-Petersburg. If the information of Rigzin Erdyneev is true, and
Dorjiev was really involved in the Zandan Zhuu affair, this story becomes even more interesting.
Up to now I was only able to find out that a certain telegram from Dorjiyev to Gomboyev really
existed, but the exact contents of this message is not known to me.
 15

who helped to take the statue away and then set the Museum on fire to to wipe
out tracks of the theft.
Having overcome the persecution of Chinese65 and Mongols on their way,
they managed to [reach and] cross the [Russian] border. As people say, first
they brought Zandan Zhuu to Khambin (Tamchen) datsan (he means
Gusinoozersky Datsan, the seat of Bandido Khambo Lama – A.T.). And without
any consulting the Selenga people they carried Zandan Zhuu to the Egetui
Datsan."
Though some details of this story are definitely wrong – such as the
mention of 'Museum', etc. – the fact of taking the statue by kossaks and setting
fire in the 'Museum' exactly fit the story.
Or, as it is published by professor of fililogy Ulzy-Zhargal Dondukov: "…
Gomboyev received a cable from Khambo Agvan (=Dorjiev – A.T.). It was said in
this telegramm, that it is necessary to take advantage of the situation and to
buy the statue of the god Zandan Zhuu for money or gold. The Consul
Gomboyev (in fact Gomboyev was not a Consul, but a head of an Embassy's
postal service – A.T.) together with a lama of Egitui Datsan had instigated the
ataman (head – A.T.) of the Selengin kossaks who guarded the Russian
Embassy. And this ataman was a Buryat from Jida sortuls (a Buryat tribe – A.T.).
They developed a secret plan… and payed in gold to the keeper of the
Museum… I have heard this story from the member of Mongolian Academy of
Sciences Luvsandondev…"66
It is interesting to ponder why some Buryats were so keen on this statue.
Probably the 1st Buryat Lama who paid great attention to it was famous
Namnane Lama of Tsugolsky Datsan, who came to Beijing to make 100000
prostrations before this sacred image67. And this Lama was a root Guru of
Dorjiev, who brought him to Tibet, and also he gave some big initiations at
Egitui Monastery, where he probably was telling to local monks about his travels
in China and Tibet…
A Buryat legend tells us that even while kept in Peking, every morning the
statue was found turning north (evidently, dreaming to go to Buryatia – A.T.). To
avoid this inconvenience, the servants of the temple one day fixed the statue to
the floor by a nail, which they hammered between the big toe and other four
toes of its foot. Still it did not help. Perhaps this recent legend was referring to
the broken finger of the right foot of the statue which was repaired in the mid
XX century – the finger was reportedly cut out from cedar (or pine – A.T.),
guilded and installed by the sculptor Vasilyev.68
Another legend tells us that some influential Lamas from Mongolia tried to carry
the statue to Mongolia, but Gombo Dorje managed to resist all their efforts, so
65
Heather Stoddard (personal communication) has heard from someone that the Great Wall was
crossed through the Juyongguan Gate.
66
Зандан Жуу Бурхан Тухай. "Буряд Унэн" (an Ulan-Ude nespaper in the Buryad language of
03.04.2008). Trans. From the Buryad language by N. Dorjieva.
67
‘jam dpal dgyes pa’i blo gros. dpal ldan bla ma dam pa rnal 'byor gyi dbang
phyug byang chub tsul khrims dpal pzang po'i rtog brjod gus ldan dad pa'i chu
gter 'phel ba'i zla ba'i snang ba zhes bya ba bzhugs so||Рукопись на тиб. яз. в
архиве автора, л. 13а. Also see : А. Кугявичус, А. Терентьев. Жизнеописание
Намнанэ-ламы Чжанчуба Цултима. (in print).
68
. – see Н.Б. Бадлаева, Т.В. Бадлаева. "Зандан Жуу"
www.datsan.buryatia.ru/ZandanZhu.html (29 Nov 2004).
 16

the statue was kept at Egetui Datsan up to 1935. Also, there was a new copy of
the statue cut out from the wood – to substitute an original one in case if
Chinese will came to claim their possession. Now this wooden copy is placed in
the altar of Kizhinga Datsan in Buryatia (see ill.??).
Egitui Datsan by that time was one of the leading Buryat Monasteries.
Famous Russian Mongolist Pozdneev, when visited it reported that its printery
had wooden blockes with carved texts of 34 volumes in the Tibetan language,
and the same number on Buryat-Mongol language.69 The records of a Buryat
scholar Bazar Baradiin of 2004 says:

"Here one can find lots of printed Tibetan and Mongol books, and generally local
conditions makes me believe that the educational level of this datsan will be
flourishing among other Transbaikalian datsans.
The monastery underwent several reconstructions. In 1900 the new Tsogchen
Dugan (main hall – A.T.) was built in the Chinese style. The builders were from
Buryats from Orongoi locality (Orongoi carpenters were quite famous that time).
Desides Tsogchen Dugan there were other buildings like Choira Sume
(philosophy school), Dandra (Tantra – A.T.) Sume, Duinkhor (Kalachakra – A.T.)
Sume, and others."70
According to Ochir Lodoyev from the Egita village: "Old people told there
were about 300 households around the monastery, and 700 lamas were serving
there. There were doctors 'emchi', yogies 'yegozor', many educated and learned
old ones. They were often visited by lamas from India, Tibet, China, and from
other Buryat monasteries like Aginsky, Tsugolsky, etc. That period there were
no phones, nor electricity, but they could communicate at a distance. When
antireligious compaign in the USSR started in the middle of 1930-s, all these
lamas were dissipated, arrested, or shot. The monastery belongings were
nationalized, cofiscated, destroyed or stolen."71
According to a local journalist D. Zhamsuyeva: "First the Tsogchen Dugan
was used for the Chair of the Egitui Consumer's Society and the Credit
Partnership, then the Unitary Labour School of the 1st degree moved in there. In
1942 the whole Tsogchen Dugan was disassembled and moved to the regional
center – the village of Sosnovo-Ozerskoye, where they built a cinema (called
Raduga) from its parts.
The other datsan buildings followed similar fate: the aimak Hoito-Dugan
was taken to become a club of the Egitui collective farm called after Karl Marks,
Urda-aimak Dugan became a club of the collective farm of the Uldurga area
called after Molotov, Zun-aimak Dugan became a Communist party headquaters
in Sosnovka."72

When the peasant revolts against ‘collectivization’ started in Siberia in the

1930-s; together with Buryat peasant uprisings, the Buddhist monasteries were
smashed by Soviet military power. Many precious statues, paintings and
manuscripts kept in the monasteries perished forever, some were saved in the
museums and private hands.

69
Quoted from Бахлаев С. А,. Эгитуйский дацан [Egitui Monastery],Улан-Удэ: Изд-во Бурятского Университета, 2004, с. 18.
70
Ibid.
71
The interview recorded by K. Ermilov.
72
The interview recorded by K. Ermilov.
 17

There began a new chapter in the biography of the Sandalwood statue: it

was confiscated from the monastery and taken to Antireligious Musum in Ulan-
Ude. This action was performed by two persons: Zh. Zhabon and Ts. Nomtoyev.
Zhalsan Zhabon.
As described by Svetlana Bardaleeva: " Most important role in the collecting and
thus saving from destruction of the religious items was played by Zhalsan
Zhalsanovich Zhabon (1899-1971), who was working as an instructor of the
Regional Councel of the 'Militant Godless', and in 1938-1939 was a deputy
director of the Antireligious Museum.
Zhalsan Zhapovich Zhabon was born in Angir Dodo ulus of the Kurbin somon of
Hori region. From 13 years old he studied at a Buryat school by Atsagat Datsan.
In 1924 he also graduated from the Mongol language courses and he perfectly
mastered the old-Mongolian scripts. For some time he worked as a school
teacher at Eravna area, then as a translator in Mongolia. In 1938 he attended
special courses for the antireligious museums workers in Leningrad, so he had
some fundamentals in museology. Together with other museum workers - G.-D.
Natsov and A.N. Kochetov73 and with the Director of the Antireligious Museum of
Buryatia A.I. Gerasimova he raided the Buryat areas on the museum 'polutorka'
truck (a truck designed to carry 1.5 tons – A.T.) and collected buddhist valuables
from the destroyed datsans. He new the Buddhist artefacts very well and new
what valuables were preserved where. He was in touch with many monks who
helped him to take the saved things to the museum. He would say that we
should not destroy the heritage of the people – not the gods made their own
images – the images were made by human hands. I think that under the mask
of an atheist he was hiding deep faith.
From 1952 and up to his death in 1971 Zhabon served as the Chief Museum
curator. The reserves of the museum were kept in that period in the building of
the Odigitrievsky (Russian Orthodox – A.T.) Cathedral. And the Zandan Zhuu
statue was brought to this very place."74
A former school teacher Ts. Nomtoyev (later he became a writer and a ‘Hero of
Socialist Labour’), who worked at that period in Egetui school, narrates the story
of confiscation of the Sandalwood Buddha from the monastery like this:
"One day Zhabon came from the city on a lorry and told me that he came
to take Zandan Zhuu to Ulan-Ude, before the ‘godless’ destroyed it, and he
73
А.N. Kochetov later became an Ober-Buddhologist of the Soviet Union and his two booklets
"Buddhism" and "Lamaism" though anti-religious in their attitudes still were the only books on
Buddhism produced during the 70 years of the Soviet Power. I shortly met professor A. Kochetov
around 1980-s., and, recollecting his years in Buryatia, for some reason he was fast to confess
me, the person he met for the 1st time, that 'reports' against certain Buddhists (the appearance
of such a 'report' usually meant 5 years of concentration camps for the person in question –
A.T.) in Buryatia were written not by him, but by Vampilov, the Chairman of Buryat Section of
'Godless Militants' (the Soviet organization instrumental in the destruction of religion all over the
country, and particularly in Buryatia – A.T.), where Zhabon worked as an 'instructor'. For fairness
I must mention that at about the same time I also met Vampilov, who, as also Kochetov, settled
far from Buryatia (in Balashiha by Moscow). And it was equally strange that Vampilov, who also
sow me for the first time in life also for some reason started to explain to me that these 'reports'
were produced not by him but by Kochetov … It was a difficult and dangerous time both for
Buddhists and for Buddhologists … So, I am not surprized that the 'Instructor of the 'Godless
Militants Union' was saving Buddhist relics . My Lama Zhimba-Zhamso Tsybenov also had
friendly relations with Zhabon.
74 С.Б. Бардалеева. "Легендарный памятник буддийского искусства" //Сокровища культуры Бурятии. (Спецномер Наследия народов Российской

Федерации)I №1, 2002, p. 318.

 18

asked me to help him. We drove to the datsan (Egitui monastery – A.T.)

wrapped the statue first with khadaks, then with white felt, and asked local
women to sew the felt. Then we loaded it into lorry and drove to our place to
have tea. When we came out of the house, there were many believers in the
courtyard, who came to receive adis (blessings – A.T.) from Zandan Zhuu. In the
lorry’s body we found lots of money – the last offerings to Zandan Zhuu from
Egetui people. We handed the money over to the village Council and started on
a trail. The locals walked behind the lorry sprinkling milk. We started late and
drove basically overnight not to irritate the population too much".75
Thus, the Sandalwood Statue, 218 cm high76, was placed in the 2nd store of the
former Russian Orthodox Odigitrievsky Cathedral of Ulan-Ude, the Buryat
Capital, which was converted into the storehouse of the “Antireligious museum”
reserves – this museum became one of the richest museums of the world with
its many thousands of items of Buddhist collections stolen (or, rather, saved)
from the ruins of destroyed Buddhist monasteries. Later it was conjoined with
the Historical Museum of Buryatia.
The very existence of Sandalwood statue in the Museum was not
advertised – the statue was hidden from the general public, and curators of the
Museum were privileged to use their position to secretly show this statue to
believers or to their friends. It was believed that even seeing this statue was
very beneficial for one’s karma. When in 1978 I was first taken to the 2nd floor of
‘the Church’ – as people still used to call this museum building, - the curator
seemed slightly embarrassed when I saw the money – somebody’s humble
donation – by the feet of the statue - in the atheistic state it was not acceptable.
Later, when we made friends and I won more confidence from her side, she
confessed that she even tried to test a widespread belief that the statue is
actually flying in the air, and that one can drag a thin thread between the heels
of the statue and the floor77, - but failed. Why? – she was not sure – was it
because the statue was not genuine, or because she herself was not pure
enough?
Anyway, this huge statue was very impressive, with its special aura, and it
notably differed from anything I had seen before78. Two most unusual features
75
. Quoted by Н.Б. Бадлаева, Т.В. Бадлаева. "Зандан Жуу" www.datsan.buryatia.ru
76
. This size was reported by Bardaleeva - С.Б. Бардалеева. "Легендарный памятник
буддийского искусства" //Сокровища культуры Бурятии. (Спецномер Наследия народов
Российской Федерации)I №1, 2002, p. 318.
77
. This legend was mentioned already by lCang skya Rol pa’i rdo rje – see above, note 29.
78
. Just to convey the kind of emotions the statue evoked, I quote here the recent (slightly
abridged) narration of Prof. Dr. Heather Stoddard of the Oriental Institute of the Sorbonne, which
she sent to me on 17.12.06. "In between 1990 and 1992, following a suggestion from
His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Francesca von Thyssen (now von Habsburg) began
to organise a major exhibition of Mongolian Buddhist Art. I was taken on as
curator for the exhibition. Thus we spent one week working in the huge storage
collections of the Buriat Museum that were housed in the former Orthodox
Christian cathedral of Ulan Ude. The outside walls of the cathedral were
glistening snowy chalk white and the doors and windows bright bottle green.
Inside the large building was stacked high with Mongolian Buddhist
paraphenalia of all possible kinds. Thousands of objects carefully collected from
the Buriat monasteries and temples after the monks were killed and before the
temples burnt by the Bolsheviks in the mid-1930s.
 19

were the eyes looking upward (what was mentioned already by Rolpa’i Dorje),
and fingers spread apart, - in later, especially Tibetan canons, you will never see
it.79 The artistic style of the statue was not clear for me, and later I found that
art historians have very different opinions on this style. As noted by A.M.: "The
exact source for this style has been the subject of much argument by scholars
in Japan, who have related it to styles at Ajanta (in Central India), South India,
and Gandhara. Gregory Henderson suggests a relationship to Mathuran Buddha
figures of the fourth century, such as the famous sandstone figure in the
National Museum, New Delhi.80 Pratapaditya Pal, following Alexander Soper,
sees it as “a stylistic synthesis of elements from sculptures created at Mathura

Working through the objects piece by piece with the every-ready help of our
Buriat colleagues, we at last arrived in the uppermost chambers. To my
enormous surprise and delight, in the topmost chapel at the front of the
cathedral above the main doorway, I spied what I knew instantly to be the
famous Tsandan Jowo (the Sandalwood Lord), one of the most sacred images in
all the Buddhist world. Tradition says that it was made during Lord Buddha
Shakyamuni’s lifetime in his own likeness, in order to console the group of
disciples in his absence while he went up to the paradise of Tushita to teach to
his mother for a period of three months. I knew of it from my studies in Buddhist
art, but was also aware of its recent history from research into 20th century
Tibetan-Mongolian affairs. It was said that during the Boxer Rebellion (1889-
1901) just as the unpredictable Boxers rushed in the front gate of the temple,
the Mongolian caretaker monks deftly carried the two-meter statue (adorned
with fourteen alternating layers of gilding and lacquer) out of the back door and
had it taken away in the night through the Juyongguan gate of the Great Wall of
China and into the wilds of Mongolia where it was hidden away pending more
clement times. Then in the 1930s, it was the turn of the Bolsheviks to launch
their massive destruction of Buddhism. At that time, Agvan Dorjiev (1854-1938),
the famous Buriat advisor to the 13th Dalai Lama and to the last Tsar of Russia,
Nicolas II (abdicated 1917), was already in his 70s. He managed to secure the
image before it fell into Boshevik hands and had it hidden away again for a
while, before it was placed with all the other Mongolian sacred objects in the
cathedral in Ulan Ude.
On the third day of our stay, a group of high-ranking Tibetan lamas arrived in
our hotel from Ulan Bator, where they had been attending the Asian Buddhist
Conference for Peace (Sept 13-17 1991). They were on their way back home to
India via Russia. The chief lama was none other than the State Oracle of Tibet,
Nechung Kuten. Having recently studied in great detail the legend of the origin
of the Nechung deity with Mme Ariane Spanien-Macdonald at the EPHE in Paris,
and being the only one of our team to speak Tibetan, I was delighted to be able
to enquire of the young oracle about many things.
We ordered a sumptuous meal to be prepared for these special surprise guests.
Our guests were invited to sit on one side with our team on the other. I was put
in the middle opposite Nechung Kuten, chatting to him over a high pile of
steaming mutton, and interpreting for the lamas.
Of course I spoke to them of the Sandalwood Lord. The lamas were thrilled and
wanted to go and visit it right away. But there was a «snake guarding the
treasure», and we had to negociate with our Buriat lady colleagues to keep the
 20

in India and Khotan in Central Asia”.81 James Caswell calls it “an amalgam
created under the Northern Wei from a variety of foreign sources.”82 The crucial
point is that the “Indian” style of the figure, manifested in the clinging drapery,
became an iconographical feature of the Chinese image."83
Still we must remember that all these authors made their observations
without ever seeing the original statue – their judgments were based on the
Serioji copy.
For some time one iconographic detail of the statue was arousing my
suspicion: according to Tibetan records, in particular quoted by Dagyab (see
note 1), there was a mention of a ‘dazzling sun-stone’ incerted by sculptors in
front of the ushnisha of a statue. Tibetans usually interpreted it as a diamond,
M. Carter in her essay suggested ruby. Nothing of the kind could be seen on the
ushnisha of our Buryat statue, though on the copper replica from Imperial
Palace and even on Seiryo-ji image a small disc with the central point, probably
signifying the ‘sun-stone’ on the front of ushnisha is clearly distinguishable.
This extra puzzle was resolved, when in August 2006 by sheer chance I
found the photo of our statue – it was in Germany, in the collection of Pesl-
Stiftung. This very poor quality photograph (see Fig.??) was reportedly coming
from Mongolia, and I think it was taken in 1935, at the moment when the statue
was taken from Egetui Datsan (we have a number of photos of looted Buryat

fiery deity at bay while early next morning we led the lamas quickley to the
cathedral, up the stairs and into the front chapel. The Tsanden Jowo was
standing in the midst of a group of smaller images, behind a large plate glass
panel. There was a lock on the glass door. The lamas stood in a line in front of
the Jowo in awed silence. Then a Buriat lady suddenly arrived with a key. As she
swiftly opened the glass door, somewhat to our surprise – for we had not seen
their preparations - the lamas quietly unfolded long white silk flowing khataks of
the finest quality that had been secreted in their robes. One by one they moved
forward and threw the scarves around the neck of the statue. When this was
accomplished they again stood back in silent reverent prayer. After a few
minutes the Nyingmapa tutor to Nechung Kuten whispered gravely: «The time
has passed ». They filed out at a deeply reverend pace. I have never been
moved by faith as at that moment. The glass door was locked up, with all the
khataks still hanging around the Buddha’s neck. We followed on outside in a
state of elation. The lamas left next morning and we departed just a few days
later..."
79
. It is interesting, that fingers of the Seiryōji replica are beautifully joined together, while the
earlier stone sculpture dated 5th century (see Fig.4??), as well as the copper replica ‘Buddha of
Clear Image’ kept in the building of Clear Buddha Image in the East Wing of the Pavilion of
10000 happinesses of the Imperial palace in Beijing (Palace of Harmony. Ed. by Wu Yugi. Hong
Kong: Art Blooming Publishing Company, n.d., pp. 161-163) also keep fingers spread apart. This
might be one more argument for a greater antiquity of the statue now kept in Russia.
80
. Gregory Henderson and Leon Hurvitz, “The Buddha of Seiryōji: New Finds and New Theory”,
Artibus Asiae 19 (1956).
81
. Light of Asia: Buddha Shakyamuni in Asian Art. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of
Art, 1984, p.235.
82
. Written and Unwritten: A New History of the Buddhist Caves at Yungang. Vancouver:
University of British Columbia Press, 1988, 41.
83
. McNair Amy, Sandalwood Auspicious Image // Weidner, M.S. Latter Days of the Law: Images
of Chinese Buddhism. 850-1850, Lawrence, Kans.: Spencer Museum of Art; Honolulu: University
of Hawaiyi Press. 1994, P.224.
 21

monasteries done by D. Natsov in that period) – one can see behind the statue
also rgyal-mtshan (traditional parasol) taken out of the monastery and thrown
on the ground. When I magnified the image – the small disk on the front of
ushnisha became clearly seen.
Then I recollected the note, mentioned in the report of the former chief
curator of the Buryat museum, Nina Badlayeva, that ushnisha of the statue was
partly damaged in the 1930s when somebody searched for concealed
treasures84.
This crime could have been a routine work of ‘militant godless’ or NKVD,
but because the statue was taken from the monastery in a safe condition – as
we now may conclude from the photograph, it would have been interesting to
research 'who done it' and where is the ‘sun-stone’ now?
The things look more mysterious in the view of the communication of the
important Mongolian historian of the 19th century, Dharmatāla, who, in
particular, said: "As it contained the Buddha’s relics, it became the focus of
offerings to all the religious kings, from the Thang [Tang] rulers until now.“85
As mentioned by P. Berger, "Dharmatāla’s prophecy hints that the viability
of the Quing dynasty is somehow tied to the fate of the Sandalwood Buddha. In
fact, the Sandalwood Monastery was burnt to the ground during the Boxer
Rebellion in 1900, an event that signaled the end of the dynasty. The
whereabouts of its wondrous image are unknown…"86
Still, the most interesting part of a short Dharmatāla 's notice, was about
the existence of Buddha's relics in the statue - the other sources do not mention
about it87. If the statue contained Buddha's relics, these relics must have been
stolen together with the 'sun-stone' – because in case of wooden statues the
relics usually are placed either in the opening in the heart area, or into uṣniṣa.
Because it was the uṣniṣa which was broken – it must have been done by a
person who knows such things. Not the ordinary 'militant godless'.
Exactly such a person was Zhabon himself. The story of bringing the statue from
the Egituiski Monastery to Ulan-Ude, as retold by Nomtoyev, sounds a bit
suspiscious. Why did these two persons 'drink tea' deep into the night instead of
starting their trip as soon as possible – trying to avoid the unpredictable
outcome of the negative feelings of the villagers who gathered at their
courtyard? According to oral communication by N. Badlayeva, the statue was

84
. Н.Б. Бадлаева, Т.В. Бадлаева. "Зандан Жуу" www.datsan.buryatia.ru.
85
. Dam-chos-rgya-mtsho (Dharmatāla). Rosary of White Lotuses, being the clear account of how
the precious teachings of Buddha appeared and spread in the great Hor country/ Tr. and annot
by Piotr Klafkowsky. (Asiatishe Forshungen, B. 95) – Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 1987. p. 418.
86
. Berger Patricia, Empire of Emptiness: Buddhist Art and Political Authority in Quing China,
Honolulu: University of Hawai´i Press 2003, p. 164. She also mentions that Dharmatāla provides
earlier date, 1665, for the establishment of the Sandalwood Monastery, and notes among other
episodes, that the Sixth Panchen Lama dutifully paid homage to the image right after he arrived
to Beijing (p. 308). Dharmatāla also observes that this "precious Jowo Rinpoche [is] inseparable
from the real Buddha".
87
. Only recently I have found a reference to these relics by Dunkar Lobzan Trinley, the author
of the recent fundamental Tibetan language Encyclopaedia called Dungar Tsigdzo chenmo
(Dung dkar blo bzang 'phrin las. Dung dkar thsig mdzod chen mo. PRC, 2002. - My gratitude to
Dr. Andrey Strelkov, who attracted my attention to this publication.). The compiler of this work
states, basing, evidently, on Chinese sources, that the Buddha relics obtained by the Chinese
General who captured the Sandalwood statue and Kumarajiva came together. - P. 1653.
Probably it was this piece of relics which was placed into the statue.
 22

brought to the museum with a hole in ushnisha, but if the photograph No.?? was
really made at the Egitui Datsan at the moment of confiscation of the statue –
one can definitely see that the head was intact. As narrated by N. Badlayeva:
"In my young years when I have just joined the Museum, my duty was to
remove dust from exhibits, including Zandan Zhuu. Once I noticed a hole on top
of the statue's head, and of course, I ask Zhabon about its origin. But he
avoided answer, and only mentioned, that probably this was done by 'godless
militants' (to whom he belonged himself! – A.T.). Probably they also extracted
the "sun stone" – a large diamond, from the 'third eye' of the statue, and passed
it to the Ministry of Finance."88
Of course now it is difficult to say anything definite about this incident.
Anyway, according to some, the relics in the ushnisha were extracted and
'saved' from the pressing Soviet Ministry of finance. If this information is true – it
confirms the words of Dharmatāla that the statue contained Buddha's relics.
The relics are said to be enshrined within small golden stupa and small silver
replica of the statue itself – each was 5-6 cm high. If this story is true, the
precious relics must be still kept by someone in Buryatia89.
As was narrated by the present Chief Curator of the Museum Svetlana
Baturovna Bardaleeva: "In the Soviet Period in order to see the Zandan Zhuu
there was required a special permission of the Buryat Party Commetee. We
were strictly forbidden even to mention the existence of this statue. But people
were feeling by hearts that the Zandan Zhuu is in Odigitrievsky Cafedral and
some even were making goroo (traditional circumambulation as expression of
reverence – А.Т.) and prayed outside the gates. It was believed that even to be
near the statue (even more – if you see it) can substentionally improve karma.
Those who managed to enter (usually these were high guests) and approached
Zandan Zhuu, noticed that He is alive, felt the change in His eyes, some even
heard His voice. While Zandan Zhuu was present in the Cafedral, there was felt
something invisible in this building, and when the statue left, it was gone."90

Around 1983 the Buryat Ministry of Culture invited an expert commission

from the Hermitage Museum in Leningrad to explore the present state of the
precious statue. The commission was headed by Dr. Maya Lebel, and, as Nina
Badlayeva (who was a Chief Curator of the Museum in this period) tells us:
"During the years while the statue was in the Museum, it was restored several
times… In the middle of 1980-s for restoration of ushnisha and hair of the statue
there was invited Dr. Maya Nikolayevna Lebel, the restorator of the highest
qualification. To prepare paint for the hair and for shaping the ushnisha at the
head of the statue there were Lamas invited: lamkhai Munko Tsybikov, lamkhai
Zhimba-Zhamso Tsybenov and thanka-painter Danzan Dondokov – a deep
expert in the iconography and iconometry. With their help and cunsultations
М.N. Lebel restored the hair of the statue and cleaned it."91
But, because she did not have any reference photo-material (as she explained
to me in the interview of 2008) – she shaped ushnisha in an ordinary fashion,

88
The text of the interview kindly provided by K. Ermilov.
89
In 2007 while in Ulan-Ude I addressed the public with a request to those who might be still
keeping these relics, to return it to the Buddha statue.
90
The text of the interview was kindly supplied by K. Ermilov.
91
Badlayeva, op. cit.
 23

without placing a circle with the 'sun-stone' on its front side – as it was with the
original ushnisha.
She also made several interesting findings. First, it was discovered that
the material of the statue (they analyzed at a Hermitage Laboratory a small
piece of wood from a slightly ‘wounded’ heel of the statue) – was not a
sandalwood – it was lime-tree wood. The wood was covered by a thick layer of a
sandalwood paste92. Above the paste layer the statue was covered by three
layers of gold leaf gilding separated by the layers of lacquer. The upper layer of
the gold was also painted.
As mentioned earlier, this gilding was commissioned by the empress in the reign
of Ming Emperor Wan Li (1572-1620 - A.T.). The very use of this special
technology shows that the statue was a sacred object of high importance.

After the fall of totalitarian communist regime in the Soviet Union, when the
country regained religious freedoms, the Egetui Datsan was rebuilt anew as
most other destroyed Buddhist monasteries of Buryatia were. Then, on the
request of its abbot, Dorji Lama, and believers, on 25th of September 1991 the
statue and its belongings – the crown93, earings, 'toli' (Mongolian for "mirror" – a
circular shape hanging on the breast of the statue – А.Т.) – were carried back to
Egita as it was decided by the Buryat Ministry of Culture. A couple months
before that the statue was attended by His Holiness the Dalai Lama XIV, who
visited Russia on the occasion of the 250-th anniversary of recognition of the
Buryat Buddhism by the Russian state.
Actually the Central Buddhist Board of Russia started negotiations concerning
the return of this statue from the beginning of the 90-s.
Nina Badlayeva narrates: "The main role in this was certainly played by the
Bandido Khambo Lama Munko Tsybikov. Otherwise the statue would most likely
be placed at one of the central datsans (Egituisky Datsan is one of the most
remote. – А.Т.). He was telling me that before the repressions (i.e. 1935) he was
a 'khuvarak' at Egitui Datsan and his duty was to take care of the Zandan Zhuu:
he was preparing offerings to the statue, making prostrations. He was the last
person taken from the devastated datsan. He locked the door, looked backed
and left with tears in his eyes, and he made a prayer that one day the
monastery will revive again and people will be able to venerate Zandan Zhuu
again.
Now, when people carried the statue from the cafedral, a surprising thing
happened: only 3-4 persons were able to bring it down the nerrow and very
inconvenient staircase from the 3rd floor. And they said that Zandan Zhuu is
very light. I remember Zhabon telling me that, in 35-th 10 strong men could
hardly bring the statue up. I asked Munko Lama how could it be, and he replied:
«He wants to go home, so he made himself light!»
But the most unusual thing happened when Zandan Zhuu was carried to Egitui
Datsan by helicopter: in September there started snowfall, and it was so thick!
92
. Exactly as described by Rolbi Dorje and others. Here it may be mentioned, that in Indian
tradition we know some cases, when the object is called ‘sandal’ if only some part of it is really
made of sandal.
93
I met the restorator from Ulan-Ude, Mr. Valery Malushenko,who restored these things before
returning it to the Buddhists. He told some funny details about it, in particular he communicated
that when reinstalling the nissing stones of the crown incrustations, for the yelow stoned he
used the green bottle glass, and for the red stones – the rear ligths of electric locomotive.
 24

There was a feeling of a holiday, still it was quite frightful to fly by helicopter in
such a weather. Only Zandan Zhuu peacified us. During the flight the snowfall
encreased and visibility became practically zero. The pilots afterwards
confessed that they could find the way only by looking to the river of Uda.
Perhaps, only thanks to Zandan Zhuu we arrived safely."94
So, the statue was returned to this monastery, placed in the main altar of the
temple and… gilded anew(!!!), so, that the deep shine of the paint and gold
behind the ancient varnish was lost: the new bright gold formed a kind of
compound with the old lacquer and could hardly be removed95. This dreadful
accident was vividly described by the popular Buryat newspaper "МК в
Бурятии": "…Here we can refer to the meaningful story which happened
several years ago with the famous Buddhist sacrament – the statue of Zandan
Zhuu. This sandalwood statue, together with the Atlas of Tibetan Medicine and a
precious body of Khambo Lama Itygelov are recognized as a Buddhist
Sacraments of Russia, as a monument of federal level. According to the legend
the craftsman produced it 2,5 thousand years ago from the piece of
sandalwood, looking at the reflection of God in the river. The sacrament Zandan
Zhuu was brought to Buriatia from China. First it was kept in Odigitrievsky
cathedral, then it was returned to the Buddhists of the Egitui datsan. In the
datsan the statue was kept in the hall without heating (in winter the
temperatures in this area often go to minus 40 degrees Centigrade – A.T.), so
the priming and gilding started to scale off and fall. Some wooden parts were
bitten by rats. Then the temple servants didn't find anything better than to rely
on help of the scene painter of the village 'House of culture'. He simply covered
it with guilding directly over the shelling, using materials which he found in the
local shop. Into the hole of the Zandan Zhuu forehead this man inserted stone,
and as the stone was a little bit too large, the involuntary "restorator" instead of
trimming the sard, decided to widen the hole. When we were invited to examine
the statue we found it in this state with the expression of suffering on the newly
repainted face. Immideately after that the restorators from the Hermitage
Museum were invited to Egitui datsan, who did their best to preserve the
sacrament......
Then again restorators from the Hermitage Museum were invited (this
time Marina Michri and Dmitry Konovalov) and it took them two years to remove
new gilding, - as the present Chief curator of the Buryat Historical Museum,
Svetlana Bardaleeva, tells us.96 This time again samples of wood were analyzed,
but now, instead of ‘lime-tree’ (as was found out in the same laboratory in 1983)
the material was determined as “rare wood”, and more than that: the statue’s
age was defined as only two centuries old.97

94
Запись интервью любезно предоставлена К. Ермиловым.

95
. Консерва для реликвии// МК в Бурятии on 07.04.2006
96
. С.Б. Бардалеева, op. cit., p. 320. Also quoted by BĚLKA, L. Op. cit., p. 149.
97
. “The conclusion of the laboratory tests give evidence that the statue of the Zandan Zhuu was
made of rare wood by Chinese masters at the end of the l8th and the beginning of the l9th
century,” - Мордвина Л. Мифы и реальность Зандан Жу // Эгитуйский дацан. (ред. Бахлаев
С.А.). Улан-Удэ: Изд-во Бурятского госуниверситета, 2004, с. 37. Quoted by Belka: op. cit., p.
149.
 25

But when I personally called Hermitage and asked Marina Мichri98 about
these data, she was surprised and explained to me that this publication must be
a misunderstanding, because in fact the analysis of the wood, made at the
Hermitage laboratory, only supported the previous conclusion that the wood
was a lime-tree, and not "rare wood" as it had been indicated in the cited
article. She also said that the laboratory was not doing any datings, and the
supposed age of the statue (only 200 years) was nothing else but her own
personal preliminary opinion based on "stylistic peculiarities" of the statue and
it was not designed to be published. Also М. Мichri mentioned that the finger of
the right foot of the sculpture was cut out of the pine-tree, and not of the ceder
as was told by Badlayeva (see note ??). One more interesting observation of M.
Michri consisted in the fact , that the neck, kneels, back and palms of the statue
were worn, as if by a gown which was weared by the statue for a long time.
Well this really was true – as we can see from the oldest photograph of
this statue shooted before 1935 at Egitui Datsan and recently discovered in
Buryatia by K. Ermilov (see ill??).

Though the village of Egetui is about 300 km from the Buryat capital of Ulan-
Ude, it is connected with it by a good road, which makes driving easy. The place
looks virtually empty, so a small hotel nextdoor to the statue is also empty – it is
easy to go there and see the famous image. Some people share their
impressions of the visit.
Gustav Munik, Chehia99:
"If you stare to the face of Zandan Zhuu it seems to start shining. When I
noticed it, I took a seat at the bench opposite the statue. The holl of dugan was
empty … I don't know how long I was sitting there when I realized that around
the shining image of the statue there started to manifest beautiful palice – not
different from the wooden dugan, but a kind of transformed one – everything
became glaring and beautiful. Tears appeared in my eyes, and after a while
everything returned to an ordinary state. I went out of the building hiding my
eyes from my quetly talking friends, and suddenly sow the ants on the ground.
And I realized: they do not know what a sacred image they live near by and
cannot appreciate the beauty of this place..."
Oxana, Vladivostok:
"The blessing of the Sandalwood Buddha is felt here not only in every grass
blade, but in your every breathe. It seems that this place is most calm on the
Earth, blessed by the Buddha himself..."

In 2004 году я told the story of the Sandalwood Buddha to one of the oldest Tibetan
Lamas – Ven. Кirti Tsenshab Rinpoche. Rinpoche was so impressed by the photo of the
statue that immidiately decided to see this statue with his own eyes. He commisioned a
very special mantle made, to fit the statue's size, and brought it to Russia next year.
His visit is described by the abbot of the Egitui Datsan,
Amgalan Lama, the abbot:
"One of the most honourable pilgrims in our Datsan was a Teacher of the Dalai Lama
XIV – Кirti Tsenshab Rinpoche. When he arrived in July 2005, there happened strong
storm with powerful lightnings. The Teacher asked to leave him alone in the dugan of

98. T 31.10.2006.
elephone interview of
99
The following interviews were recorded and kindly presented for publication in this book by K.
Ermilov.
 26

Zandan Zhuu, and for several days he was reading prayers there from 4 p.m. up to 9 in
the morning. Perhaps, he felt that the time when he will leave this body is approaching,
so… when leaving , he asked us when he will pass away to place 108 butter lamps
before Zandan Zhuu and read prayers for half a year, and we did it in 2007, when it
happened."100

For several years they were building a new building of a special design – for Zandan
Zhuu – the building with optimal for the statue climatic conditions and no possibility of
fire. The statue moved there on 25th of July 2008 and it was a great holiday for all
Buryat people – several thousand attended the ceremony.
A big marble-clad building with much light, regulated temperature and humidity,
became a convenient home for this remarcable statue.

How reliable and trustworthy are the above versions and traditions on the
Sandalwood Buddha?
We may divide this question into three:
1) Did the ‘Udayana Buddha’ image ever existed?
2) What statue was placed by Emperor Kangxi, into the ‘Sandalwood Temple’?
3) Is the statue preserved in Russia the same, as the one, venerated by Kangxi?

1) The survey of research on this topic done by Martha Carter101 leaves almost
no hope that the story of creating the Sandalwood Buddha Image by Udayana
could be reliable. Her reasons are the following: no early Indian sources mention
this story, it is also not included in the Pali Canon, though there is a mention on
conversion of the Vatsa-rāja Udayana in Saṃyutta-nikāya 102 and some other
texts.
Before the 5th century a.d. Udayana was not mentioned as a patron of
Buddha103, and Martha Carter meaningfully mentions that his kingdom did not
even ask for the share of relics after parinirvana.104 Besides, the first mention of
the Udayana Buddha statue in a temple of Kauśāmbī belongs only to the year
640 – in the travel diaries of Xuanzang.105 Chronologically, the first written
mention of the story of Udayana Buddha is the Chinese translation of
Ekottarāgamasūtra – an elaborate rendering of Aṅguttara-nikāya, compiled by
Tocharian monk Dharmanandi in 385.106
But we also should take into account the existance of parallel legends in
the Siamese and Burmese traditions, which seem to be independent of northern
sources. On the other hand, we do not know what were the sources of
Dharmanandi and how old they were. Pali Canon was transmitted orally for

100
This interview was also recorded by K. Ermilov. True, when Voula Zarpani, the Rinpoche's
interpreter called me and passed this last will of Kirti Tsenshab Rinpoche, Oyuna Dorjigushayeva
brought all the way from Ulan-Ude the butter for the lamps (see. photo ??) and everything was
done as the Teacher wanted.
101
. Carter, M. Op. cit.
102
. Saṃyutta-nikāya, vol.IV (127), Pali Text Society Edition, London, 1894, pp. 110-113. (See M.
Carter, op. cit., p.4)
103
. See also Niti Adaval. The Story of King Udayana/ Chowkhamba Sanskrit Studies, LXXIV,
Varanasi, 1970.
104
. Op. cit., p.5, Note 15.
105
. Law, B.C. Kauśāmbī in Ancient Indian Literature, Delhi, 1939, p. 18-22.
106
. See details in Carter, M. L. Op. cit., p.6.
 27

about 500 years before it was written down for the first time, and some texts of
Mahāsanghikas could also be quite old.
M. Carter argues, that the creation of Buddha images was forbidden by
Sarvastivāda Vinaya107, but, on the other hand, in the Sthavira Vinaya, or any
Theravāda text (as witnessed by Ven. Prof. Anuruddha in personal
communication of 04.11.2006) there were no such restrictions.
I think it is not absolutely improbable, that there could exist an earliest statue of
standing Buddha, which served as a prototype to the artists of both Gandhara
and Mathura.

2) As we have already seen, there are several legends in Chinese literature

connected with the Sandalwood Buddha image, and there is evidence that in
the 9th century there were minimum 4 replicas of it in China, one of them
supposedly connected with Kumārajīva. Emperor Wu of Liang Dynasty also
claimed to be in possession of an authentic copy of the Udayana Buddha108, and
there were other icons. Which of them was placed in the Sandalwood Temple in
Bejing by Emperor Kangxi – it is very difficult to say.
Still it is interesting to note some specific details of the statue preserved in
Russia. First, the fingers of its hands are stretched apart (like in stone sculpture
of Northen Wey period – see Fig.4), while later replicas (see for example the
Serio-ji copy) have fingers beautifully joined. Still later images, based, perhaps,
on our particular statue, again have fingers stretched apart – see Fig.14.

3) Is the statue of Egitui Datsan the same as the ‘lost’ statue of Emperor
Kangxi?
Belka, in his research, did not believe it109, - only because of the quoted 'results'
of the Hermitage laboratory analyses of 1995. But, as we found out (see p.??)
there were no such analyses.
Bearing in mind exact correspondance of many of the statue's technical
details such as blackish varnish, triple guilding, and other features mentioned
by both Rolbi Dorje and Dharmatāla – one can hardly imagine that those specific
features were so expertly reproduced by unknown masters in a remote Buryat
village. So, it is definitely the same statue.

Conclusions.
All over the world of Buddhist art we meet one icon of standing Buddha in
centrally symmetrical drapery with his right hand in abhaya-mudrā and left
hand in varada-mudrā. The earliest representations of this type we see in
Gandhara, in Mathura, in Bamyan and, according to some, even on some
Kanishka I coins. The legends, first recorded in the 4th century, tell us that this
icon was commissioned during Buddha’s lifetime either by rāja Udayana, or by
rāja Prasenajit. The original image of supposed 'Udayana statue' (if it ever
existed) or the early replica of the above image is said to appear in China
evidently at the end of the 4th century or earlier, and either survived up to now,
or was substituted at some stage by another copy, which was kept in Peking
and finally was placed into a special Sandalwood Temple by Emperor Kang Hsi.

107
. Carter, M. L. Op. cit., p. 34.
108
. (M. Carter, op. cit., p.3, n. 6)
109
. Belka, op. cit, p. 150.
 28

During the Boxer’s uprising of 1898-1900 the statue was not lost, as most
authors think, but stolen by Buryat Buddhists, and eventually placed in Egetui
Buddhist Monastery in Buryatia, Russian Federation, where it can be seen now
by anyone.
Because, as analysis showed, the material of this statue is not a sandalwood,
but lime-treewood110, it seems likely that the statue kept in the Sandalwood
Temple in Peking was not the Sandalwood statue of the legends, but a copy.
Still, this remarkable statue is undoubtfully one of the most sacred and
interesting Buddhist icons in Jambudvīpa.

Supplements

Supplement No.2

A detailed Chinese account of the history of this icon was inscribed on the
produced in 1597 hanging scroll depicting the Sandalwood Buddha (inc rubbing
of the stone engraving, kept now in the Field Museum of Natural History in
Chicago). The full translation of the Chinese inscription was published by Amy
McNair111:
"Record of the Sandalwood Auspicious Image. The image of the Buddha was
established in order to contemplate his appearance. The royal virtue (of King
Udayana) manifested itself in a material object (the statue of Shakyamuni he
commissioned), and its reverent fidelity exhorted the populace to conversion.
Since ancient times, there have been many magical images, but the one
transmitted from the greatest distance is the sandalwood image of King
Udayana. All the records say the Buddha was born in the Western Regions in the
24 year of the reign of King Zhao of the Zhou dynasty (trad. 1029 b.c.e.) and he
entered nirvana in the 52nd year of the reign of King Mu (trad. 950 b.c.e.). After
Buddha had attained complete enlightenment, he ascended to the
Trayastrimsha heaven to preach the Buddhist Law to his mother. Several
months passed, and he had not returned. Because the king had been separated
so long from the one he revered, he determined to have an image carved from
sandalwood, since he longed to look upon the sacred form of the Buddha.
(Buddha’s disciple) Maudgalyayana feared the image would be inaccurate, so by
his spiritual power, he took 32 craftsmen up into heavens. There they observed
the special marks on the Buddha’s body, and in three tries, they achieved a
faithful likeness. When it was completed, the king and his countrymen wished to
compare the figure to its inspiration, so the Buddha again descended to the
world of men. The king led his subjects out to welcome the Buddha, and the
statue rose into the air to present itself to the Buddha. The Buddha laid his hand
on the head of the image and said “A thousand years after my nirvana, you will
have gone to China, to make Buddhism flourish there.”

110
Still, we must take into account that only a small piece of wood from the heel was identified
as limetree – it could happen that this particular heel were a later piece of statue – the wood of
the statue's body was not analysed.
111
McNair Amy, Sandalwood Auspicious Image // Weidner, M.S. Latter Days of the Law: Images
of Chinese Buddhism. 850-1850, Lawrence, Kans.: Spencer Museum of Art; Honolulu: University
of Hawaiyi Press. 1994, P.221-225.
 29

Over 1.280 years after the Buddha’s nirvana, the image was first transmitted
from the Western Regions to Kucha (in modern Xinjiaang province). Sixty-eight
years later it went to Lianzhou (modern Gansu province). Fourteen years later it
went to Chang’an (modern Xi’an ). Seventeen years later it went to Jiangzuo
(Yangzi River area). One hundred seventy-three years after that it went to
Huainan (modern Anhui province). Three hundred and seventeen years later it
returned to Jiangnan. Twenty-one years later it went north to Bianjing (modern
Kaifeng). One hundred and seventy-six years later, during the inaugural year of
the Shaoxing era of Emperor Gaozong of the Song dynasty (1131), Emperor
Taizong of the Jin state welcomed the image to Yanjing (modern Beijing). He
founded a Water-Land Ritual (Hall) and donated the image to the Minzhong
Temple. In the 12th year (1142), Emperor Xizong of the Jin established the
Dachuqing Temple. The image was placed in the Jiqing Pavilion. In the 20th year
(1150), the Jin Prince of Hailing returned from the south (to ascend the throne),
and he returned the image to one of the inner halls of the imperial palace for 54
years. In the third month of the dingchou year of the Yuan state (1217), there
was a fire in the palace, so the minister, Lord Shimo, offered the image to
Sheng’an Temple. Nineteen years later, it went to the Yuan (when Yuan
conquered Jin). In the 12th year of the Zhiyuan era of Emperor Shizu of the Yuan
(1275), the great official envoy Marco Polo and his entourage, accompanied by
Buddhist monks and musicians, offered the image to the throne, and it was kept
in the Renzhidian for the next 15 years. In the dingchou year (1277), Dasheng
wan’an Temple was built. In the 26th year (1289), the image was taken from the
Renzhidian and placed in a rear hall of the temple for over 140 years. From
there it went to Qingshou Temple, where it remained for over 120 years, until
the 17th year of the Jiajing era (1538). When the Emperor heard a memorial
reporting a fire at the temple, He had the image offered to Jiufeng Temple. By
now, the 25th year of the Wanli era (1597), it has dwelled here 58 years. From
the year King Udayana had the image made, in the 12th year of King Ju (trad.
990 b.c.e.), to the present it over 2,580 years. How extraordinary!
Majestic auspicious image! Glorious golden visage! Revere it, look up to it, as if
the Great Sage were immanent. Now when all the Buddhist monks arrive at the
temple and pay their reverence to the abbots and the monks, they say, “we are
ignorant of the origin of the Sacred traces”. Some visiting lay worshipers also
ask about the story of the image’s beginning. Records and chronologies give the
dates and places of the auspicious image’s travels over the centuries. In
addition, Emperor Shizu of Yuan once ordered the Hanlin Academician Recipient
of Edicts Cheng Jufu to write the “Auspicious Image Palace Record”, and
Emperor Taiding (r.1324-1328) asked the Institute for Glorification of Literature
Academician Tuoyin to have it engraved in stone. These records provide
detailed research into the origins of the auspicious image. The period from the
image’s entry into the origins of the auspicious image. The period from the
image’s entry into Shengshou wan’an (Dasheng wan’an) Temple during the
Zhiyuan period to the present is also part of its history. This subsequent record I
have appended in order to display (Udayana’s) royal virtue and to illuminate the
experience of the masses who come here. If they understand its origin, it will
increase their reverence at worship. To proclaim their good deed, the
benefactors are listed on the reverse of this stele. The auspicious image will be
forever worshiped at Jiufeng Chan Temple in the capital.
 30

Written on a favorable day in the 8th month, in autumn of the dingyou year of
the Wanli era (1597) by Shaoqian, a Buddhist monk from Chengdu, who also set
up this stone.
[Inscriptions at bottom (in Tibetan):]
The Excellent Throne-holder of Tushita Heaven; Reengraving of the Excellent
Throne-holder of Tushita Heaven (C. Maitreya)."112

112
. The author of the article also mentions, that Tibetan identification of the image as Maitreya
is "incorrect" (p. 224). It is possible to suggest that the Tibetan inscription 'the Tushita Throne-
holder' might refer not to Maitreya, but to the version of the Udayana Buddha legend, stating
that the Buddha visited his mother not at the 'Heaven of 33', but at Tushita heaven. Thus, in this
period the Buddha Shakyamuni, as portraied in the Sandalwood statue, was the throneholder in
Tushita. This suggestion could, perhaps, explain why iconographycally similar replicas of the
Sandalwood statue are sometimes identified in the Chinese art as 'Maitreya'.)